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IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES)

Strategic Plan: 2015-2019



Published – March 15, 2015

Updated - TBD

____________________________________________________________________________________IEEE/PSES Strategic Plan 2015 – 2019 of 45Published: March 15, 2015Updated: TBD



TABLE OF CONTENTS1 Executive Summary.........................................................................................................3

1.1 Objectives.......................................................................................................................3

1.2 Organization....................................................................................................................4

1.3 Governance.....................................................................................................................4

2 FOI, Mission, Vision and Core Values ..............................................................................5

2.1 FOI...................................................................................................................................5

2.2 Mission............................................................................................................................5

2.3 Vision..............................................................................................................................6

2.4 Core Values.....................................................................................................................6

3 Strategic Goals.................................................................................................................7

3.1 Goals...............................................................................................................................7

3.2 Goals/Objectives/Tactics.................................................................................................7

Goal A Provide Educational and Professional Development Products of Value to Researchers and Practitioners World-Wide......................................................................8

Goal B Image, Visibility and Branding.............................................................................11

Goal C Foster Member Engagement, Volunteerism, and Membership Development ...13

Goal D Engaging and Mentoring Young Professionals....................................................16

Goal E Development of Financial Resources...................................................................18

Goal F Create and Develop a Long Term Leadership and Succession Plan .....................19

4 References.....................................................................................................................20

Acronyms and Abbreviations Appendix A

Background Appendix B

A General Process for Planning and Thinking Strategies Appendix C




1. Executive Summary1.1 Objectives

This five year plan was developed by our AdCom and is intended to steadily build value for our members. The plan calls for phases of growth and development as follows:

2015/16 – growth & support 2017/19 – innovation & excellence

The plan focuses on six key areas that will result in a stronger operating system, sound financial practices, solid revenue growth, improved governance, and recognized operating practices.

These six key areas are:

Provide Educational and Professional Development Products of Value to Researchers and Practitioners World-Wide

Image, Visibility and Branding

Foster Member Engagement, Volunteerism, and Membership Development

Engaging and Mentoring Young Professionals

Development of Financial Resources

Create and Develop a Long Term Leadership and Succession Plan

The plan is intended to be a ‘living document’ that we utilize to guide our decision making toward the direction of our vision and mission. We have a number of goals and objectives and limited resources, so we prioritize our activities regularly to focus on those strategies/tactics that will result in the most value or benefit to our members. We will ‘work the plan’ including review and update of the plan, in particular the tactics, regularly as we complete active tactics and prioritize and select new ones we will begin to develop.

The tracking of our progress on active strategies/tactics is included in our PSES ‘Dashboard’ where the active strategies are indicated along with their owner, expected completion, metrics, etc.

The plan also contains an overall Background on the PSES in Appendix B and was developed following the general principles and analysis of the PSES outlined in Appendix C to this document. These Appendices are used for historical reference and may be updated as the operating environment and overall characteristics of the PSES continue to evolve.




1.2 OrganizationThe IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) is a not-for-profit association and as such the purpose of the society is defined within its governing documents (Constitution and By-Laws). The PSES Constitution describes the Society and the By-Laws provide rules of operation for the Society.

The Society follows a hierarchical structure with an Administrative Committee (AdCom) comprising of Directors, taking responsibility for operational excellence and growth of services respectively. The presiding officer of the Society is the President, assisted by other officers (VPs).

All functions are performed by volunteers. Membership of the AdCom includes volunteers from all 10 regions of the IEEE.

1.3 GovernancePSES will further enhance our Governance practices to ensure we are demonstrating best practice in the field of Non-profit organizations. We will develop our AdCom to provide us with good oversight and sustained input to the strategic direction of our activities.

Our team collectively built a set of Core Values that include:

Inclusiveness

Networking

Professionalism

Technical Excellence

Volunteerism

Looking forward, the PSES is committed to continue to provide the valuable services it supplies to its members and others. The PSES will continue to strive to ensure that the latest product safety and compliance engineering technologies are available to all technologists in order to ensure the continuing growth and maturity of the field. The Society will continue to support all services to ensure future generations will not only have these resources, but will be able to utilize them to their fullest to support: utilization, the application to research, and industry best practices.




2. FOI, Mission, Vision and Core Values2.1 Field of Interest (FOI)

The IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society focuses on the theory, design, development and practical implementation of product safety engineering methodologies and techniques for equipment and devices. This includes the study and application of analysis, techniques, construction topologies, testing methodologies, conformity assessments and hazard evaluations. The Society provides a focus for cooperative activities, including the promotion of product safety engineering for the benefit of humanity.

2.2 MissionThe mission of the PSES is to serve the product safety and regulatory profession and the public, by fostering the development and facilitation of the exchange of knowledge in the disciplines of product safety and compliance engineering (PS&CE), as detailed in the PSES's field of interest (FOI), and promote scientific, literary, educational and professional aspects thereof, that benefit members, the profession and humanity.

Spelled out, it follows that the core purpose of PSES is:

to serve the needs of product safety and compliance engineering (PS&CE) professionals;

to create and maintain a diverse global community to exchange technical knowledge for the betterment of the profession and humanity;

to facilitate the creation, dissemination and preservation of high quality product safety and compliance engineering (PS&CE) information globally; to promote the identification, creation, development and application of product safety and compliance engineering (PS&CE) technologies for the benefit of humanity;

to serve society at large and the profession by providing a forum to identify, discuss, foster and disseminate current and emerging developments and research that can benefit humanity;

2.3 VisionThe Vision of the PSES is to be recognized as the respected innovator and global resource for scientific, technological and engineering information and services in the disciplines of product safety and compliance engineering for the betterment of society, and to be the preferred professional development source for our members.

Specifically:

To be recognized as the preferred and leading global resource for timely and relevant information on product safety and compliance engineering.

To be the preferred community for all professionals in the disciplines of product safety and compliance engineering.

To be essential and universally recognized for contributions to the global technical community.




To be recognized globally as the leading organization for forming new knowledge communities in the disciplines of product safety and compliance engineering.

To be the technical Society that professionals join and are drawn to stay active in as volunteers throughout their careers.

2.4 Core ValuesThe PSES believes in:

Inclusiveness: Embracing diversity of our members and their careers;

Providing high quality services that meet member needs worldwide;

Respecting each other’s values with honesty and transparency.

Networking: Creating an engaged, interactive community of technical professionals.

Knowledge Integration between practitioner and academic communities.

Professionalism: Maintaining the highest level of professional and ethical standards;

Knowledge-based decision-making from an organizational perspective.

Technical Excellence: Promoting innovation in the product safety and compliance engineering disciplines;

Disseminating high quality scientific and technical information in a timely, equitable and objective manner.

Volunteerism: Actively engage every Society member




3. Strategic GoalsCurrently there are six building-block strategic goals that comprise the framework of the IEEE PSES Strategic Plan. Each Goal contains objectives with additional context followed by Tactics that include and propose activities that the PSES can further develop as the IEEE PSES AdCom deem appropriate.

As mentioned previously, with our limited resources, we will focus on a limited number of Tactics at any one time and move on to others as current prioritized Tactics are completed. It is believed that by implementing these tactics together and by leveraging existing PSES materials, knowledge base and relationships, the value of the PSES products and services will increase for existing members and attract new ones.

Also, as mentioned previously, the context provided in Appendix A (overall approach and PSES analysis) provide a directional course for these Goals and the PSES in general.

3.1 GoalsStrategic Goal A: Provide Educational and Professional Development Products of Value to Researchers and Practitioners World-Wide

Strategic Goal B: Image, Visibility and Branding

Strategic Goal C: Foster Member Engagement, Volunteerism, and Membership Development

Strategic Goal D: Engaging and Mentoring Young Professionals

Strategic Goal E: Development of Financial Resources

Strategic Goal F: Create and Develop a Long Term Leadership and Succession Plan

3.2 Goals/Objectives/Tactics

Tactics are arranged with the highest priority items first.

Tactics highlighted in yellow are actively being developed and are tracked on our PSES ‘Dashboard’ with detail on responsible Board Member, estimated time of completion, status, metrics, related challenges, and enablers as appropriate.




STRATEGIC GOAL A : PROVIDE EDUCATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PRODUCTS OF VALUE TO RESEARCHERS AND PRACTITIONERS WORLD-WIDE

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

Researchers, practitioners and their employers around the world will value the PSES as a major resource of highest quality, authoritative, and timely information, providing access to and a forum for discussing product safety and compliance engineering Technical Information.

(B) OBJECTIVES (WHAT, SPELLED OUT):

(1) Develop and disseminate intellectual property to technical practitioners (including the next generation) and a broader set of stakeholders/constituents

(1) Identify safety aspects of emerging technologies

(2) Increase participants in society leadership

(3) Increase employer positive perception of the value of Society membership

(4) Serve entrepreneurs and professionals in organizations without dedicated safety engineers

(5) Investigate alternative participation and delivery models for conferences

(6) Improve PSES internal efficiency to better meet industry needs

(7) Achieve an organizational structure that allows flexibility

(8) Identify and develop products and services that result in long term PSES membership retention

(9) Address emerging technologies

(C) STRATEGY/TACTICS (HOW):

(1) Conferences

TCs shall have oversight/responsibility for their respective disciplines

Incorporation of "Fundamentals of Product Safety" Workshops (gassroot level)

"Global PSE University" (higher level)

Record such products (Workshops and "Global PSE University") and develop as educational products

Partner with University "Videography Class" to develop such products professionally

Develop virtual conference platforms (e.g., CVEP) for delivering educational programs

Promote topical sessions or workshops on emerging technologies at symposia or other technical forums

(2) Chapters

Open chapter meetings to non-members (with the intent of recruiting new members)




Traveling workshops (to chapters and beyond) for membership development, develop chapters and revitalize chapters (models: Vancouver, Atlanta)

Make video-ed products available to chapters for meetings

Partner with Public Broadcasting Stations (PBS) to use recording studios (for small fee) to record lectures

(3) Educational Activities Committee

Creating the Educational Activities Committee and structure

Unievrsity Outreach: Develop basic/fundamental (1o1) educational materials (e.g., the UBC program)

Offer IEEE CEUs, PDHs, etc, for qualified continuing education programs (e.g., conference and other workshops)

(4) Make better use of webcasts at symposia, chapter meetings, etc.

Develop topical webinars and broadcasts (for fee)

(5) Technical Activities

Create a Future Directions TC in order to rapidly address emerging themes and technologies (for creation of educational products on such topics)

TCs shall build a relationship with the leadership of the chapters

TCs shall initiate educational programs for conferences, colloquia, chapter events, webinars, etc.

TCs shall develop educational materials within their scope (e.g., module on forensics up to a full program/course) for academic and semi-academic PSE educational programs)

Pomote and develop iNARTE PSE certification programs (certification is an educational product)

(6) Develop IEEE EAB "eLearning" Modules or Module series on PSE (as an additional resource of revenue and a way to get the word out. Work with global industry leaders to:

Inform them about the PSES

Survey entrepreneurs and professionals in smaller organizations to find out what they need

Learn from them what they would want from PSES for their industry and for their employees

Focus on 1÷3 and 3÷5 year needs

Team with Industry to offer industry-generated Educational Products to PSES members (e.g. UL)

Investigare needs of industry for educational products not offered by training organizations and/or individual educators

Partner with Inustry education entities and the IEEE-EAB to evaluate their programs in PSE and offer IEEE CEUs/PDHs in the PSE field

(7) Review PSES Current Educational offerings

Inventory current PSES offerings to identify deltas between "wants" and "haves"

Develop a mechanism to fill the gaps




o Launch a pilot

o Involve other major IEEE organizational units (OUs) as appropriate

o Create a portfolio of products and services and sunset some existing offerings

o Develop mechanisms to reduce time to publication.

o Attract top-quality submissions.

(8) Publicize our Educational Outreach to industry worldwide

Distribute targeted brochures to industry

Provide content to Marketing Committee for subsequent generation of advertising material and content

(9) Domain Name

Acquire the "*.guru" domain name for "Product-Safety.guru" for educational material, announcements, etc.




STRATEGIC GOAL B : IMAGE, VISIBILITY AND BRANDING

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

PSES will enhance its brand and the perceived value of product safety and compliance engineering to the profession as well as to the public.


(1) Identify communities best served by the PSES

(2) Provide a single focal point for access to technical information in safety related areas

(3) Insure integrity, quality and review of published technical information that is used to accesses safety implications of technologies.

(4) Increase global recognition of the PSES as a facilitator and forum for solutions in safety of existing and emerging technology.

(5) Build a sustained, global presence.

(6) Improve scientific and technological literacy in Safety engineering

(7) Improve our partnerships with national and international associations with kindred applications of safety engineering principles.

(8) Improve our PSES presence through tradeshows, conferences, publications, affiliate societies, private enterprise and social media.

(9) Make the PSES presence visible in existing and emerging technologies.

(10)Develop policies and practices that respect and advance the global nature of our activities.


(1) Conferences

Improve publicity of conferences: LinkedIn, TV News & Local Newspapers around symposiums, Vendors

Continue joint and cooperative activities with non-PSES organizations

"Free Exhibits" pass option for the Symposiums - pre-registration required so we can market the full program to them

Vendor Showcase track allowing vendors to speak on anything they want - they can invite their customers to their talk and the free exhibits (hopefully design engineers) - paid exhibitors get first shot at the time slots for this track.

Add tracks to the symposium to attract Design Engineers, Vendors, other Product Categories.

Invite technical expert speakers

Hold PSES International, and regional symposia at multiple venues where appropriate and possible (annually)

Implement alternative participation and delivery models for conferences




(2) Publications and Content

Develop an agreement with CE to have our technical content delivered to PSES members

Require content development by TC's with the intent of getting one TC article each issue, each TC will only have to develop one article approx. every 2 years.

Develop online content library for members and allow for charging non-member access

Write review articles on emerging PS&CE opportunities

Write application-oriented articles for the PS&CE Newsletters/Magazine

Organize special issues on “hot topics” of regular publications

Special coverage/topic articles in the Spectrum and IEEE Proceedings

(3) PR

Find a volunteer from the membership to serve as PSES PR rep

PR rep issues regular and special press releases (regular = symposium; plus special activities and events)

Find effective distribution channels (iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, and IEEE channels)

(4) Global Outreach

Find a volunteer from the membership to serve as PSES Global Outreach rep (Steli has expressed interest)

Find a volunteer from the membership to serve as PSES Global Outreach Country rep for each country in which we have PSES membership

Increase chapter development and revitalization with special focus on low participation regions

Develop leadership training program (local and international) in the PSES

(5) Administration

Find a volunteer from the membership to serve as PSES Partner rep (Steli has expressed interest)

Develop a framework to efficiently identify and enter into strategic alliances, e.g., joint projects, with PS&CE partners. Share successful technical activities with other IEEE entities in their areas of expertise

Coordinate with major IEEE Organizational Units (OUs) and other organizations

Monitor global trends in PS&CE issues

Schedule AdCom meetings in Regions 7-10 when appropriate and fiscally possible.




STRATEGIC GOAL C : FOSTER MEMBER ENGAGEMENT, VOLUNTEERISM, AND MEMBERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

PSES will identify and develop strategies that result in membership growth, engagement and enhance member’s perceived value of volunteerism and participation in PSES activities.


(1) Chapters

Continue global chapter development, encouraging membership development as part of every meeting, communication and activity

Develop and motivate proactive chapter leadership through training and mentorship

Enhance outreach activities by BoD members

Reach out through the local chapters to the universities/colleges

Work with non-IEEE organizations (e.g., iNARTE (RABQSA), International Systems Safety Society, etc.) to increase member and chapter development

Engage retired members to participate in chapter activities, mentoring and university outreach

(2) Volunteerism

Increase volunteer engagement

Provide support to volunteers and members

(3) Inter-Society & Regional Activities

Formalize Inter-Society & Regional Activities and Alliances including active presence and visibility in IEEE Sections Congress




(4) Outreach to professionals in all fields regarding safety engineering including at the university level

(5) Develop a program to drive retention of Society members

(6) Help corporations/companies/academia understand the value of IEEE & PSES membership of their employees and students

(7) Provide pre-college and college/university students' career development

(8) Provide professional development opportunities to our members

(9) Engage retired members to participate in chapter activities, mentoring and university outreach

(10) Advocate the value of PS&CE to non-PS&CE professionals


(1) Recruit experts to develop TCs and have TC work with corporate to increase membership of non-members participating in TC activities

(2) Automatic renewal of IEEE and PSES membership

(3) Use ‘Member-Get-a-Member’ Program, through:

Chapter activities

TC activities

Symposium activities

(4) Seek collaborative efforts with other IEEE societies and other professional organizations to attract non-members

(5) Have a Membership Development Desk at every conference

(6) Develop "job descriptions" to help set expectations and give training

SECONDARY PRIORITIES

(7) Training the members through symposium, TCs and chapter; with classes and short courses; contents should be inventoried for future use (and possible sale)

(8) Create a member profile classification according to their desired products and services

(9) Retention

On-going promotion of IEEE benefits

Senior Member Elevation

Recognition and Awards (motivate continued engagement)

Build on the "community" sense

Survey membership to find out what they think about the present benefits and what they feel is needed to increase membership retention




(10)Professional Development

Recruit and engage members in Society activities (leadership, technical, etc.)

Improve publicity of educational products and services (e.g., DL)

Develop video presentations to be incorporated in relevant academic courses

(11)Pre-college and college/university students' Career Development:

Help students to make informed decisions about their career choices.

Establish a career website

Provide speakers for career days

Invite college students to a chapters/workshop/reception

Early introduction of our society to pre-college students

Work with the guidance counselor or a teacher at the school to set up an evening of interaction between the students and members.

Aim to inform them about the various aspects of the profession.

Highlight IEEE involvement

PSES Involvement in Student Branch & IEEE-HKN etc. activities

Arrange joint workshops with the Student Branch on PSES-related emerging technologies (some students make great lecturers!)

Assist in establishing a career fair at the University

Hold workshops to inform graduating students on how to get a job in PSES Technologies

Ask the local Chapter members for leads on local career opportunities for entry-level positions

Encourage chapters to create a website to advertise positions within the local community

(12)Recognition of volunteers through awards program and other means (current program needs (significant) improvement)

(13)Engage retirees in PSES and PSES Chapter activities

(14)Engaging Retired Members

Mentor/help students to take part in science fairs

Get in touch with your local chapter/student branch –offer to help

Get involved in local workshops, conferences and science & engineering fairs and competitions

(15)Advocate the value of PSES to non-PSES professionals (see marketing group)

Use of on line services (e.g., YouTube) to disseminate PSES know-how




Make PSES a part of academic curricula (exposure to students early in their professional career)




STRATEGIC GOAL D : ENGAGING AND MENTORING YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

PSES will provide students and young professionals' education and engagement opportunities that encourage them to join the PSES and assume an active role in its activities and leadership


(1) Boost the involvement of GOLD members

(2) Attract, engage and retain young professional non-members

(3) Boost image of safety engineering and the student member value proposition to attract and build a diverse workforce for the future

(4) Develop an effective campaign to portray product safety in all facets of industry


(1) PSES Chapters to contact local University IEEE Student meetings foster joint meeting and encourage students to make a PSES Chapter meeting presentation/receive certificate for college credit. Encourage University Professor to add safety as an aspect in design.

(2) Drop reference/ to High School

(3) Develop Video(s), (Safety 101) for IEEE College Student meetings.

(4) Work with Symposium committee to bring college students (IEEE Student Members) to the PS&CE Symposium with name tags and coordinate a specific program agenda (sample each Technical Track, 1 day only) ending with Question/Answer meeting, and activities at the end a talk on IEEE and PSES and membership

(5) Discount conference fee for GOLD/ Student members, emphasize reduced fees for IEEE and Society fees.

(6) Add Student paper contest to Symposium

(7) Encourage Student Internship programs in companies.

(8) Develop university and GOLD outreach through joint workshops, career fairs and marketing outreach.

(9) Develop an application video at several companies/organizations (UL, etc…) to show breadth of PS&CE applications put on and PSES website/show at different events, IEEE College Student meetings.

(10)Create young professionals specific opportunities in conferences, (discount conference fee for GOLD members) pubs, TA/standards and educational

e.g., PSES Newsletter: young professionals section

e.g., new standard member mentoring program

(11)Present opportunities for young professionals to get involved with like individuals in PSES activities: conferences, pubs and educational




Effective Advertising and marketing

Leverage existing social networks; GOLD

(12)Recognition for young professionals' involvement as well as those who encourage and support YP participation (i.e. awards).

Use inclusive approach that draws in new members as well as existing members

Social event




STRATEGIC GOAL E : DEVELOPMENT OF FINANCIAL RESOURCES

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

PSES will develop a financial program to insure the long term financial viability of the society.


(1) Establish a Financial Committee (FinCom) and designated Chair for the Committee to facilitate oversight of financial resources

(2) Set financial goals for relevant activities (Symposia, Workshops, Membership, etc.) with metrics and monitor regularly with FinCom.

(3) Identify new sources of income and develop accordingly.

(4) Control non-budgeted Society expenses

(5) Cooperate (as financial co-sponsors) with other societies to jointly hold international conferences/workshops


(1) Add Budget to Dashboard

(2) Review Budget at least quarterly with BoD including revenue and expense status and forecast for the year.

(3) Develop a budget with a positive surplus for the individual activities – each major activity to have associated expenses and revenue identified

(4) Identify societies and conferences with whom PSES shall cooperate

Build a paper flow for the said conferences

(5) Convert appropriate PPT symposium presentations to eLearning modules

(6) Grow our conference through exhibits, patrons and archival papers rather than PPTs.




STRATEGIC GOAL F: CREATE AND DEVELOP A LONG TERM LEADERSHIP AND SUCCESSION PLAN

(A) GOAL (WHAT):

PSES will develop a long term succession plan for the BoD with a balanced composition of experienced and new members.


(1) Develop formalized succession plan/process for BoD officers/leaders

(2) Identify roles and responsibilities of each BoD Member with respect to succession – every member has a role

(3) Formally engage chapter chairs in the succession plan

(4) Broaden awareness and participation of a more diverse membership group

(5) Create mentorship/training opportunities for BoD candidates (one-on-one, at Symposia, chapter meetings etc.)


(1) Develop Roles and Responsibilities (including time commitment, meetings, etc.) for each position

Post on the website

Discuss at Chapter Meetings to encourage others to consider

(2) Publicize various volunteer positions open within the PSES

Newsletter

Web Site

Chapter Meetings

Other?

(3) Actively reach out and engage society members in BoD committees

(4) Initiate Dialog with Chapters regarding succession

Develop leadership and succession plans in the chapters

Solicit potential BOD and Officer Candidates from Chapters

(5) Leadership training




4. References[1]Constitution – IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society, Approved: June 21, 2003[2]By-Laws – IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society, Approved November 2007[3]IEEE Technical Activities Strategy Document, Document No: A SPC.01, November

2007.[4]PSES ‘Dashboard’ – Active working document for PSES activities updated at each BOD

meeting – includes direct reference to Strategies/Tactics that are currently being worked on in this Plan.

[5]PSES Website - http://ewh.ieee.org/soc/pses/


http://ewh.ieee.org/soc/pses/



Appendix A: Acronyms and Abbreviations

AdCom Administrative Committee (also AdCom)

AdCom Board of Directors

IEL IEEE Electronic Library

OU Organizational Unit

PS Product Safety

PSE Product Safety Engineering

PSES Product Safety Engineering Society

PS&C Product Safety and Compliance

PS&CE Product Safety and Compliance Engineering

PR Public Relations

RAC Representatives Advisory Committee

SAC Standards Advisory Committee

S/C Society/Council

SP Strategic Plan

TAC Technical Advisory Committee

TC Technical Committee




Appendix BThe following provides an overview of the initial planning work that went into the development of the Strategic Plan that is found in the main body of this document. The information contained herein is a historical representation of the environment and thought process at that time. This serves as a valuable reference to where we started as we will now continue to update and ‘work the plan’ moving forward. Information related to the current state of the PSES, including Constitution, By-Laws, etc. can be found in those documents and the PSES Web site.

BackgroundProduct Safety compliance is a topic receiving considerable attention from policy makers and the public and forms an integral part of the responsibility of every product development engineer and supporting organization. Decisions and policies are often made by those who have little understanding of the technical implications of their decisions. The public is confused, and is often frightened by "raging oracles". Product Safety professionals formalize efforts to incorporate activities specifically oriented toward hazard identification, risk analysis and control on a comprehensive (total life-cycle) basis. Product Safety professionals work knowledgeably and effectively with all functions (technical, administrative and management) toward elimination or reduction of risk to an acceptable level.

For many years it has been recognized that no widely accepted professional organization exists for the sole purpose of advancing the field of product safety, or the particular field of electrical product safety. There have been moves to establish an independent society for product safety, but for unknown reasons, those groups have never come to fruition. However, within the IEEE Electromagnetic Compatibility Society, a grass roots effort was started over ten years ago to address some of the needs of product safety professionals. Almost exclusively by word-of-mouth, that group has grown to involve several hundred people interacting through the internet and at local ad hoc chapters located around the country. The group, which has functioned as the Product Safety Technical Committee, (PSTC) of the Electromagnetic Product Safety Committee (TC-8) has enjoyed a steady growth in numbers, scope and influence over the years.

Since the initial formation of the PSTC, the Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) has been developed and now is a full Society in the IEEE. Membership now extends to over twenty different countries and a variety of related professional occupations.

The PSES has the expertise, relations and system understanding to provide technical input and leadership. If the PSES is to position itself as having a role in this arena, direction and clarification is needed in the following areas to further solidify the long term direction:

Define the position and role of the PSES in addressing safety related issues associated with emerging technologies.

Determine the role of the PSES in the development and implementation safety related policy issues.

Understand the PSES’s role in evaluating the impact of safety related issues across the product spectrum.

In addressing the above issues, the following subset of activities will be impacted:

The image and perception of the PSES.

The membership required to address the above roles.




The role of professional education in the Society.

Visibility to the public.

Communication requirements with sister organizations within and outside of the IEEE

Relations with corporations including corporate membership.

Structure and scope of Technical and Educational Committees within the PSES.

General Approach

The IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) serves approximately 900 members (and a virtual community of over 1,100 members) and is facing challenges with a declining asset base, pressure on budgets, political uncertainty, aging workforces and a declining participation rate.

The process of planning and developing strategies for a complex organization such as the IEEE PSES (herein "PSES") constitutes a multi-level process and considers inputs from Strategic Planning (SP) meetings, Society challenges, membership interests, and stakeholder issues. In further sections, the process is applied to the PSES and shall form a basis for the Strategic Planning sessions to be held in future.

To develop the Strategic Plan, an approach was used to define PSES stakeholders and competitors. An effort was launched to study the maturing workforce of industry to better connect with employers and identify areas where the Society could offer increased value. A list of goals, activities and PSES coordination points were identified.

This document captures the spirit of discussions and establishes the initial five Society strategies as a framework for direction in the coming years. While the strategies consider workforce and global trends, they are defined with the assumption that PSES's Core Ideology, namely mission, vision and core values remain relatively unchanged.

Objectives of this DocumentStrategic planning for PSES should become the methodology for its operations. If it is successful, this process will not have yielded a plan to be placed on the shelf, but will have served as a catalyst for the “process of planning strategically,” at all times and at all levels throughout the Society. In order to achieve its vision, the PSES must not look at strategic long-range planning as a one-time project that produces a milestone document of its best thinking at the moment. Instead, PSES must adopt strategic planning as an operational philosophy of ongoing re-evaluation of the critical knowledge bases that form the framework of its world. We will follow and work towards the strategy during our normal day to day operations so we can maintain our focus for the long term.

Contrary to past processes, this Document attempts to lay down an infrastructure for top-down strategic planning, stemming from the field of interest, mission and vision of the PSES, leading to the goals and objectives in the different fields of activities within the PSES.

Because strategic planning is a continuous process, this Document simply forms a starting point for discussions, refinement and revisions during successive five year periods. Changing events in the industry and the Society will necessitate adjustments to this plan.

Product Safety Engineering Society ChallengesThe PSES faces several challenges. Declining industry support in recent years has resulted in dropping membership while the average age of members appears to have been increasing. Participation from senior members and fellows has been relatively constant; the declining trend is from member, student and associate participation.




The PSES is challenged by the perceived value of the IEEE PSES membership. If the value proposition and its perception could be increased, membership would be enhanced. While the PSES has addressed many complex, practical issues faced by the industry and successfully brought practicing engineers and academics together over the years, some that have not been involved believe PSES is only for academics and that there is a large disconnect between what practicing engineers need and what the Society offers. There is also a population of IEEE members that could benefit from the PSES involvement; however they evidently do not see enough value to pay the incremental dues for PSES membership. Finally, the PSES has not done well at attracting recent graduates, even though many participate as student members; as a result, the average age of membership is increasing.

The PSES can be slow to embrace new technologies. The structure of the organization has not necessarily kept up with that of industry. There is an overlap internally within the PSES committees and also between IEEE Societies causing duplication and confusion.

Cycle times for standards-making can also be quite lengthy. If standards cannot be produced in a timeframe that keeps up with the technology, those that are involved with the latest advancements will likely not be inclined to participate in the process.

Stakeholder IssuesStakeholders are those that realize value from the society and contribute to its success. IEEE PSES stakeholders and competitors. In addition to the PSES membership, the Society stakeholders also include non-members that have an interest in the discipline of product safety – for example engineers and their employers, and the general public. It is important to understand each of these stakeholders’ unique issues and value propositions. By appealing to their needs and understanding their issues – the PSES will be perceived as part of the solution, making it easier to attract future members and thereby industry support which will increase revenue and ultimately contribute greatly to overcoming the existing Society challenges.

As many are approaching retirement in the industry, all stakeholders have an interest in attracting necessary talent and sustaining the knowledge of product safety and compliance engineering (herein indicated as PS&CE). Some universities have experienced a decline in enrollment for electrical and electronics engineers in general and applied engineering courses in particular, which has negatively impacted the availability of applied engineering curricula. PS and CE course offerings are even more rare if existing at all in most universities. Therefore, one long-term concern is the difficulty of maintaining faculty numbers and student interest as new technologies emerge and draw attention away from safety-related engineering. Apparently, the lack of jobs in recent years and a less-than-glamorous image of PS&CE careers have caused universities to shift focus into other curricula, placing the PS&CE education foundation at risk.

Retirements will likely cause at least 20% of the technical employees to exit the workforce over the next 10 years and it is estimated that at least 10% will exit due to non-retirement attrition to fill leadership positions vacated by those in management positions or to enter into other industries.

PSES Organization DescriptionThe IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) is a not-for-profit association and as such the purpose of the society is defined within its governing documents. The PSES Constitution describes the Society.




The Society’s Mission and Vision statements were drafted with distinctly separate, yet complimentary purposes. The mission and vision statements are critical communication tools, enabling us to quickly share strategic philosophy with all stakeholders.

History and Membership of the Society

The Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) grew from a Technical Committee, TC-8, of the IEEE EMC Society (EMCS). TC-8 was established in the late 1980s, after a few localities (Santa Clara Valley, Central Texas, Portland Oregon, and in the New England area) had been having meetings for several years. The meetings were originally gripe sessions about CSA and UL, and expanded to cover other topics of interest to design engineers, regulatory consultants and others involved with product safety engineering and compliance for global marketing. There was some affinity with the EMCS. However, EMCS focused more on theoretical considerations of compatibility and susceptibility with nominal interest in product safety engineering and global compliance.

TC-8 very quickly became an anomaly in IEEE and the EMCS as its mailing list and number of active chapters grew. In the late 1980s, the group started the PSTC Newsletter, with a distribution list that grew to hundreds. Distributed originally via USPS, the Newsletter became "virtual" after 1996. In 1995, TC-8 developed the PS&CE-PSTC List Server, that has grown to about 1,000 subscribers who communicated via the internet. The group has maintained oversight of this list server for over fifteen years.

From about 1990 until 2005, TC-8 participated at the annual EMCS Symposium by coordinating a Product Safety Workshop [Note that it was during the society development process, in 2003, that it was suggested that "product safety engineering" was a better name than "product safety," as TC-8 had always been referred to.] At the conference, TC-8 had an annual meeting, and had an annual election for officers.

A number of TC-8 chapters elected officers and held regular meetings. Santa Clara Valley (Silicon Valley), Central Texas, Orange County, Chicago, Portland (OR), NW Washington, Research Triangle Park, and San Diego had chapters with varying degrees of activity. In New England, the North East Product Safety Society (NPSS) organized independently [because they did not wish to be affiliated with IEEE.]

In the late 1980s, our founders were told that in order to become an IEEE society we needed to build an established membership, with a number of activities and to have published materials. By the early 2000s, the TC-8 leadership was ready to form an IEEE society. It was felt that given the 1,000 or so people on chapter, list server, and Newsletter mailing lists, our global membership "universe" was five to ten thousand, and that we should be able to build to a two to three thousand member level, have more than twenty chapters, publish a newsletter and possibly a technical journal. Financing would be provided by membership dues and conference proceeds.

PSES was established in January, 2004. Since then, the society has grown to about 850 members. For various reasons we have had difficulty getting past the one thousand member level. We have held conferences with 100-200 participants every year since 2004 (2004, Santa Clara; 2005, Chicago; 2006, Orange County (CA); 2007, Denver; 2008, Austin; 2009, Toronto; 2010, Boston and 2011, San Diego.) Our Newsletter has been continually published on a quarterly basis. The PS&CE-PSTC list server continues, and our LinkedIn network has flourished with over 1,100 users.

OrganizationThe AdCom, coupled with elected executive volunteers, drives the execution of the society that is partitioned along different themes. The IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society




(PSES) has established long-term commitments in the form of Committees that support these themes.

Organizational StructureThe Society follows a hierarchical structure with an Administrative Committee (AdCom) comprising of Directors, taking responsibility for operational excellence and growth of services respectively. The presiding officer of the Society is the President, assisted by other officers (VPs) who support and lead the various themes of the Society, including:

o Member Services

o Technical Services

o Conferences and Symposia Services

o Communication Services

In addition, PSES AdCom includes the following:

o Secretary

o Treasurer

o Immediate Past President

o President-Elect (every second year)

o President

All functions will be performed by volunteers who are IEEE and PSES members as well as non-members (however, all leadership positions shall be held by IEEE and PSES members). Membership of the AdCom includes volunteers from all 10 regions of the IEEE.

Society LeadershipThe President is responsible for professional and membership development pathways which will be implemented by the Society Officers (VPs) and Directors.

The AdCom holds three face to face meetings annually to discuss organizational performance and to develop project plans for continuing improvement. In addition, monthly teleconfence meetings are held regularly.

The President undertakes leadership mentoring and development over a term of 24 months preceded by a 12 month term as President-Elect (for mentoring and training) and followed by a 24 month term as Immediate Past President.

History of IEEE PSES Strategic PlanningThe IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society has practiced formal strategic planning since the year 2000/2001, in fact before the formation of the Society. Following the direction by the EMC Society Board of Directors to spin-off PSWG (Product Safety Working Group) from TC-8 (with the objective of PSWG/PSTC becoming an autonomous Council or Society within IEEE), the TC-8 steering committee members formally organized themselves with a business plan. Version 1.0 of the Product Safety Society (as proposed then) of the Strategic Business Plan was released in October, 2001 by the EMC Society TC-8 Technical Committee for Product Safety, under the leadership of Chair Jack Burns, with the primary goal and objective for that year being gaining Society status within the IEEE.




The IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society (PSES) was subsequently created by the IEEE Technical Activities Board (TAB) in June 2003 based on the abovementioned strategic business plan. The Society began operation 1 January 2004. Since the date the proposal to create this Society stage was made, significant events developed with electrical engineering employment in the United States. This situation changed many of the parameters upon which the Society’s creation was based. It was difficult to predict the future of the society at that time with minimal metrics for membership growth and financial support. As a result, the Society could not achieve its projected goals.

To ensure that new Societies or Councils have a period of opportunity to become successful, TAB approved a new “Provisional Society/Council” resolution in June, 2005. The PSES was technically grandfathered, however, during the June 2005 TAB meeting, PSES President volunteered to move the Society to “Provisional” status, thus allowing this small Society the opportunity to rewrite its business plan. This Strategic Business Plan Issue 2, updated for use as a Provisional Society, was published September 2005, and was based on experience gained during its first two years of existence.

A revised three-year plan was developed in November, 2010, which set moderate goals for the ensuing 3 years, while planning to expand the three-year plan into a rolling five year plan. The five year plan will be reviewed and updated on an annual basis.

The PSES was subject to a Society Review Committee Review (SRC) in June, 2013 and as a result the status of “Provisional” was removed. The SRC commended the PSES for some of the best practices adopted and provided suggestions for further development.

Moving forward as a full Society, the PSES has and will continue to consider past learnings, inputs and best practices of other Societies in the creation of the 2014-2018 and successive five year strategic plans.




Appendix CThe following provides an summary of the overall process used to support our initial planning for the Strategic Plan. Also contained is relevant information gathered at the time to facilitate the decision process and ultimately identify our initial goals. As with Appendix B, the information contained herein is a historical representation of the environment and thought process at that time. This serves as a valuable reference to where we started as we will now continue to update and ‘work the plan’ moving forward. Information related to the current state of the PSES, including Constitution, By-Laws, etc. can be found in those documents and the PSES Web site.

A General Process for Planning and Thinking StrategiesThe process of planning and developing strategies for a complex Society such as the IEEE PSES constitutes a multi-level process, as described in this Section. In further sections, the process is applied to the PSES and forms a basis for the Strategic Planning sessions to be held in future.

PSES's strategic long-range plan describes a desired vision and what will be essential to achieving that vision. It is grounded in core ideology and driven by an envisioned future that realizes the full potential of PSES's ability to support its stakeholders and the industry. PSES's commitments are articulated in goals that declare the outcomes or attributes the organization intends to achieve. Objectives represent key metrics affecting PSES's ability to achieve the goal and articulate the direction in which these issues must be moved. Strategies will describe how PSES plans to commit its limited resources to make its vision a reality.

"You can please all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot please all the people all the time."

In future, PSES will not be able to be "all things to all people", but it must be "different things to different people" as the plan evolves to meet the needs of a constantly changing professional environment. Therefore, underlying this plan is the adoption of an ongoing process of planning and thinking strategically, designed to ensure relevance of direction and action over time.

In developing this strategic plan, a framework for planning was utilized, based on a model that organizes conversations about the future into four distinct "planning horizons." This framework has proven to be a powerful tool, It helping organizations in prioritizing and executing outcomes as well as in ensuring relevance of an organization's long-range direction over time.

The basic structure of the overall strategic planning process and its components are shown in Figure 4.1.




Figure 4.1: "Four Strategic Planning Horizons" Framework

Mission, Goals, Objectives, Strategy and TacticsThis section is intended to propose a definition of the concepts commonly used throughout strategic planning processes.

MissionA mission is a very big, audacious, long-term end-result or achievement. There may be objectives, goals, strategies and tactics all used to achieve the mission, but the mission is the biggest and most important thing to be accomplished.

Mission statements are usually the non-financial achievement that is developed for an organization. The mission is a what versus a how, and is very similar to a vision statement in that it has a future orientation.

Goals and ObjectivesThe mission is cracked into smaller pieces, so-called objectives. Each objective has its own objective-strategy, specifying the projects achieving that objective. The granularity of the objectives and projects depends on the complexity of the mission.

Objectives and goals are similar in that both mark the ends toward which effort and action are directed or coordinated. Although it is the aim or an end, it is not necessarily the final achievement. That’s the mission.

The two may differ, however in that:

Goals are broad whereas objectives are narrow.

Goals are general intentions whereas objectives are precise.

Goals are intangible whereas objectives are tangible.

Goals are abstract whereas objectives are concrete.

Goals can't be validated as is whereas objectives can be validated.

Objectives and goals are also whats, not hows, but they are smaller than a mission. There can be a number of objectives and goals to be achieved in order to achieve a mission, but there is usually only one mission.




So the objective that you set is directly related to the goal that you set. You first set yourself the goal that you want to get back and then craft out the objectives that would help you to achieve that goal.

StrategyStrategy is how to achieve an objective, goal (or even a mission). It is a thoughtfully constructed plan or method or action that will be employed to achieve the result.

TacticsTactics are devices or actions taken to achieve a larger purpose and are also a what, not a how.

ExampleHere’s an attempt at an example to demonstrate the use of these terms.

Mission:

To make the XYZ Society largest seller of premium candy.

Objectives/Goals:

Achieve share of market leadership in the premium candy segment.

Be known as the most expensive candy, but worth it.

Strategy:

Convince consumers that XYZ candy is the best premium candy by associating with high-end people and entities.

Tactics:

o Sample XYZ candy in high-end department stores

o Put XYZ candy on the pillows of beds in high-end hotels

Core Ideology and Envisioned FutureThe “four planning horizons” framework consists of crafting a comprehensive strategic direction based on the balance between what doesn’t change — the timeless principles of the PSES’s core purpose and core values (core ideology) and what the PSES seeks to be or become within a 10 to 15 year horizon — what would be possible beyond the restraints of the current environment.

The 10 to 15 year horizon is characterized by the articulation of an envisioned future — a BAG (big audacious goal) and a vivid description — what it will be like to achieve the goal.

Core ideology describes a PSES’s consistent identity that transcends all changes related to its relevant environment. Core ideology consists of two notions:

Core purpose – the PSES’s reason for being – and,

Core values – essential and enduring principles that guide the PSES.

The core ideology should be sufficiently broadly defined such that it prevails, with minimal need for change, the Envisioned Future, or the 10 to 15 Year Planning Horizon.

Envisioned future conveys a concrete, but yet unrealized, vision for the PSES. It is founded on the perception of the core ideology of the PSES and in particular – its Mission, and consists of:




A big audacious goal – a clear and compelling catalyst that serves as a focal point for effort – and,

A vivid description – vibrant and engaging descriptions of what it will be like to achieve the big audacious goal.

Critical FactorsThe articulation of the envisioned future guides the PSES as it considers the factors that will affect its ability to achieve its goals. Building foresight about the 5 to 10 year horizon — assumptions, opportunities, and critical uncertainties in the likely relevant future as well as emerging strategic mega-issues suggests critical choices about the potential barriers the PSES will face. This foresight also suggests the responses the PSES will need to consider in navigating its way toward achievement of its 10 to 15 year "Big Audacious Goal", or BAG.

Strategic Plan and Operational PlanningThe linkage continues into the 3 to 5 year horizon, in which the PSES articulates the outcomes it seeks to achieve for its stakeholders.

o How will the world be different as a result of what PSES does?

o Who will benefit and what will the likely results be?

Further, the articulation of strategies will bring focus to PSES’ annual operational allocation of discretionary resources. Action plans, checkpoints and milestones will be developed through an operational planning process, indicating the PSES’s progress toward each goal in every planning year.

A strategic long-range plan (LRP) is not intended to form a substitute for an annual program or operating plan. It does not detail all the initiatives, programs, and activities the PSES will undertake in the course of serving its membership and the profession, nor can it foresee changes to the underlying assumptions on which key strategic choices were based. Instead, the strategic plan identifies what PSES is not doing today, but must be doing in the future to be successful. Consequently, the strategic plan implies change — doing new things or doing more or less of current activities to ensure successful outcomes.

Putting the Strategic Plan into Action

Visions and missions by themselves do not guarantee success. Visions must be realized, missions executed, and planned goals and objectives be reached. Therefore, the most substantial and concrete component of strategic planning is the operational plan (implementation matrix) which precisely defines who does what, when, how and where, when certain results (milestones) must exist and which financial resources (budget) are associated with specific activities.

Plans for the implementation of the Strategic Plan shall be included in an Operational Plan. Upon documentation of the mission, the objectives, and the individual objective-strategies in written form an operational plan is generated listing in detail all projects required to achieve individual objectives in the time span of the ensuing three years (a "rolling plan").

o The Operational plan shall define the following:

o Objectives ("Projects") to be put into action

o "Owners" of the activities

o Milestones for implementation to be determined by the individual "owner"

o Specific metrics to be determined by the individual "owner"




o Manners of progress reporting

The operational plan accompanies the strategic document and, as a rule, must be designed with strong involvement, at least close supervision, of the strategy's planners. The operational plan specifies numerous projects for which project managers must be appointed and financial resources be allocated. Both are management decisions.

Design of the action plan must by no means be completely delegated to the implementers. If so, strategic planning will remain without impact and will be commented as Fu-Fu dust etc. Only poor managers create missions and visions and expect their realization exclusively from the implementers. Highly qualified top managers do not only create visions but carry also substantial thoughts in their mind about how they want to realize their vision and communicate these thoughts to their subordinates.

Frequently, strategic planning and operative planning (operational plan design) are regarded isolated actions. False, optimum results are obtained only if the strategic planners are sufficiently knowledgeable and competent, in order to identify the right operative activities and the right strategies themselves. Although the design of the action plan may be delegated to their subordinates, the spiritual fathers must contribute to the formulation of detailed objectives and objective-strategies. Thereby, operative planning becomes part of strategic planning.

An illustration of the Operational Plan from the Strategic Plan is depicted in Figure 4.1

An example of an Operational Plan (in tabular form) is shown in Figure 4.2.

Figure 4.2: Typical Operational Plan (Implementation Matrix)

Ongoing Maintenance and Re-Evaluation of the Strategic PlanStrategic planning for the PSES should become the methodology for its operations. If it is successful, this process will not have yielded a plan to be placed on the shelf, but will have served as a catalyst for the “process of planning strategically,” at all times and at all levels throughout the Society. In order to achieve its vision, the PSES must not look at strategic long-range planning as a one-time project that produces a milestone document of its best


Goals Project-leader Task Outcome Budget Start/End

1. Goal

– Project 1.1

– Project 1.2

– Project 1.3

– ………2. Goal

– Project 2.1

– Project 2.2

– ………3. Goal

– Project 3.1

– Project 3.2

– Project 3.3

– ………4. Goal

– Project 4.1

– ………



thinking at the moment. Instead – the Society must adopt strategic planning as an operational philosophy of ongoing re-evaluation of the critical knowledge bases that form the framework of its world, including:

o Sensitivity to member needs, insight into the future environment of the profession,

o Understanding of the capacity and strategic position of the PSES, and

o Effective analysis of the ethical implications of policy and program choices.

The purpose of the strategic planning process is to annually take a strategic review of the organization to guide the near-term and longer-range development and activities. The Plan shall be reviewed for its relevance and revised annually, as necessary, with an updated version available, when required, in the fall for approval by the PSES Administrative Committee (AdCom). The long-range plan will be used to develop the PSES short and long range goals and objectives. With the PSES AdCom approval, the strategic long-range plan shall be available on the PSES website and presented at the first AdCom meeting of each odd year1.

o In reviewing, developing, and updating it the following shall be considered:

o Review the current PSES Strategic Plan for its relevance

o Anticipate and identify new challenges to the PSES

o Clarify PSES’s Vision, Mission, and Strategic Goals

o Establish priorities and strategies/tactics for implementation

o Recommend near-term and longer-term activities and objectives to be complete over the next one to five years with appropriate milestones and measures

The PSES President-Elect and President (in his/her first year in office) shall be responsible for carrying out and implementing the strategic planning process and may appoint a committee comprised of members of the PSES and non-members with an associated interest in the well-being of the Society to assist in the ongoing efforts associated with the review and implementation of the plan. The Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) shall comprise of representatives from past and present PSES AdCom members.

At each PSES AdCom and Executive Committee (ExCom) meetings, part of the agenda should be dedicated to an aspect of the Strategic Plan in order to receive feedback on accomplishments, future directions and priorities. As appropriate, action items from the strategic planning activities may be transferred to the PSES Secretary’s Action Item List for closer monitoring on implementation progress.

On an ongoing basis, and in an effort to improve the ability of the PSES AdCom to link strategic planning to administrative AdCom activities and the overall functioning of the PSES, the impact of motions made in AdCom meetings on the PSES Strategic Plan shall be considered. Hence, a "Strategic impact to PSES and/or Relationship to the Strategic Plan" to all PSES Non-Procedural Motions shall be required (upon approval of the Strategic Plan).

1




Outcome-Oriented Strategic GoalsGoals are outcome-oriented statements that represent what will constitute the PSES’s future success. The achievement of each goal will move the PSES towards the realization of its 10 year vision. The goals are not in any order of priority. Every goal will need to be accomplished if the PSES is to fully achieve its vision.

Each goal is accompanied by a set of objectives, which represent key issues affecting the PSES's ability to achieve the goal and articulate milestones against which to measure progress.

Challenges to Achieving Success the Vision and GoalThe PSES will need to face challenges in defining the ultimate direction of its long-range plan. These challenges represent potential barriers to achievement of the goals reflecting the vision of the Society in the envisioned future, and form a basis for dialogue about the choices facing PSES. These questions can also serve as an ongoing menu of strategic issues that the PSES can use — in a knowledge-based approach to gathering insights relative to its strategic position and directional choices — to create regular opportunities for strategic dialogue about the issues facing the Society.

Challenges Discussion PrioritiesBesides the strategic goals, the Strategic Planning Committee defines a list of potential challenges and drafts top priority potential challenge topics for discussion. This list has been aligned within its corresponding strategic goal and repeated on the outcome-oriented goal details found in Section 5.2.

Assumptions about the Relevant FutureAssumption statements will help the PSES purposefully update the strategic plan on an annual basis. The PSES’ projected future environment is described in this Section. When conditions change, strategy needs to be adjusted. An annual review of these assumptions will help the Association ensure the ongoing relevance of its strategy.

The following is a preliminary list of assumptions:

Legislative and Regulatory Issueso Open access challenges will increase.

o Protecting our IP as a source of revenue will be challenging

o Negotiation of who controls technology developed by multiple groups – industry or government will increase.

o Government and industrial financial recourses and spending vary across the globe between pure and applied research.

o Key area in which cooperation and regulation will occur may be air travel, global finance, etc.

o How to deal with cyber terrorism and other global problems is an important question.




o There will be issues identified in research that are never published – there will always be a division from what the researchers know and what the public knows.

o Globalization is growing and will require changes in skill sets and standardization.

o Trends toward more web-based everything (in personal interaction, consumers and providers).

o There will be demographic shifts toward population growth spots, including China, India, etc.

o Global harmonization of PS&CE standards is a slowly evolving process immunity requirements are becoming an increasing concern

Future of the Professiono Technology will continue to advance.

o Solutions will be distributed among skill sets residing in different global regions.

o There will be a need for broader adaptive education processes to create the workforce with the appropriate skills and to attract young people.

o The professional must be flexible and open to continual learning.

o Compromises among interdisciplinary applications will be a way of life

o Cost and schedule and resources will continue to be important and interwoven

o Much greater reliance on computer technology

Industryo There will be a need to work on multi-disciplinary global issues.

o Work with government on regulatory activities.

o There will be multiple governments supporting industry, to solve world problems (such as implementation of green environments).

o Key messages that may attract young people include focusing on key societal issues, and providing them with lifelong challenging problems.

o There will be evolving educational challenges, requiring a variety of strategies, including an additional focus on multi-disciplinary aspects.

o Technical professionals will be found around the globe rather than being concentrated in a few countries.

o Technology related education needs to be able to adapt in order to attract a greater percentage of the top students, acquire a "broader" skill set, and be goal oriented.

o Providing students the capacity to thrive in a contingency-based (agility) employment environment.

Global Economic Climateo Research funding will vary as a function of the economic climate

o Service-based industries will contribute to a higher percentage of global groups.




o There will be a global shift in economic activities.

o Environmental concerns and constrained physical recourses will create challenges and opportunities.

o Globalization will increase the impact of natural and man-made disasters.

o Security and terrorism events will be less isolated; natural disasters will have world-wide effects.

Scientific and Technological Advanceso New technological and scientific advances will require flexible, agile and cooperative

reaction (within the PSES).

o The PSES needs to develop mechanisms to monitor and understand the changing global technological environment and to influence it.

o Leadership in scientific and technological advancement will be globally distributed (decentralized).

o Public awareness of science and technology will increase.

o More confusion and misconception due self-proclaimed experts and incorrect information in Cyberspace.

o Increased need for products and services among practitioners in a wide variety of fields and skill levels.

o Increased interfaces among diverse areas of science and technology.

o There will be an environment of integration among domains and technologies, disciplines, cultures, nations and age groups.

o There will be increased global challenges and there will be a need for technically-focused solutions.

o There will be increased synergy among biology, computing, electronics, artificial intelligence, and energy.

o Nanotechnology will have a significant impact.

o There will be increased energy surfers.

o The use of personal technologies will grow.

o Space age technology will advance.

o Security constraints in electronic communications will increase.

o The development, use and dissemination of information concerning dual-use technology will remain an issue for the foreseeable future. This drives some of what we can and cannot do as long as IEEE and the PSES have their membership centered within regions 1-7.

Social Implicationso Social and personal considerations will constitute significant factors in addition to

technical issues. Long term membership growth will have a social aspect as important as technical aspects.




o Awareness of the unconscious assumptions that we make when dealing with people from other regions will be a growing concern.

o Different regions will have different needs, objectives and goals. For planning purposes, consider Regions 1-7 as one group (A), region 9 as one group (B) and regions 8 and 10 as one group (C). Group A represents a situation of higher technical capability with a relative homogenous constituency, in terms of wants and needs. Group B represents a situation of lesser capability with a more homogenous constituency, in terms of wants and needs. Group C represents a situation of diverse technical capability, wants and needs. Those services that are desirable for engineers in regions 1-7 may be desirable for some engineers in other regions, but there will be many engineers in other regions who have very different desires.

o There must be recognition that there will be competition between countries, especially between the haves and have-nots. Those with greater needs will focus on services that will help them address their basic needs, while those that in a more stable situation will be looking for services that may address needs higher up on Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

o For those areas with greater needs, it may be necessary to consider an interaction model based closer to one that is like "Engineers without Borders" or "Doctors without Borders" (i.e., instead of sending in a lecturer to give a presentation or two, it may be better to send in someone for a longer period of time, who will work with people at their level, with their capabilities and teach them ways of doing things better with the equipment they have on hand).

Stakeholders and CompetitorsPSES stakeholders include engineers, managers, and administrators involved with product safety engineering and compliance/regulatory issues globally. Industry, regulators, agencies, academia and the public have an interest in PSE and compliance/regulatory issues. Increasingly, environmental and global warming issues have a PSE and regulatory component. Additionally, PSE stakeholders includes academia. There is a need to educate students in safety and ethical issues related to global product marketing.

IEEE PSES stakeholders and the Society competitors were defined as follows:

StakeholdersPSES Members

Traditional Technologies

Emerging Technologies

Electromagnetic Environment

Industry

Manufacturers

Government (e.g., DoD, Homeland Security, NIST, CIA)

End Use Customers – Society in General

Regulatory Authorities/Policymakers

Academia (Students, Educators, Universities)

CompetitorsOther tradeshows and conferences

Publishers

Sister and Affiliate Societies (e.g., IET)

Private Enterprise

Government Entities

Consultants

Other IEEE Societies




Research and Development

Consultants

IT and Software

Contractors

Lawyers and Accountants

PSES SWOT AnalysisIdentifying the strengths and weaknesses of the PSES will help it to focus its long range planning. Strengths can be used to boost plans and put them into practice, while weaknesses act as deterrents and ways to overcome them must be addressed before certain plans, the implementation of which, depends on those items can be carried out.

The analysis that follows is not meant to be comprehensive, based on formal market surveys and the like. Rather, it is based on observations, discussions, and limited surveys at chapter meetings and conferences.

STRENGTHS

Legacyo 25 Year history

Role and Needo Embedded in every facet of

engineeringo Resource of product safety and

regulatory engineering experience and IP for designers

o Designers need product safety and regulatory engineering IP

o Regulatory approval is "required" in many countries – including to a lesser extent USA (OSHA)

Governanceo Functioning AdComo Diverse regional representation

Conferenceso Ten year experience with successful

ISPCE

Publicationso Established newsletter

Infrastructure (Chapters, etc.)o Diverse technology base

(practioners)o Chapters globallyo "Best Practices" manual developed

WEAKNESSES

Role and Needo Lack of consistency in defined role of

safety engineering professionals (positions)

Governanceo Existing structure does not sufficiently

address needso Inexperienced AdCom memberso AdCom members lacking ability to lead

and deliver key taskso Certain AdCom members never attend

AdCom face-to-face meetingso Poor succession planning

Conferenceso Society culture results in non-archival

papers on IEEExploreo Ineffective publicity and marketing planso Insufficient draw for authorso Insufficient draw for attendees

Value of Membershipo Little perceived valueo Limited member services (no DL, "Angel

funds", etc.)

Publicationso Insufficient technical content for

Newsletter




Networking and On-Line Communitieso Thriving and dynamic LinkedIn

networko Networking for employeeso Facilitates employment opportunitieso Social media is driving awareness of

product safety issues

Technical Activitieso Seven Technical Committeeso Inter-society relationships

Outreach and Liaison with Other Disciplines/Societies

o Established liaison and cooperation with several IEEE (CES, RS) and non-IEEE (SSS and others)

o Representation at other society conferences

Diversity of Membershipo Culturalo Global

Strategic/Long Range Thinkingo Have been engaged in mid-term (3

years) strategic thinking

o Do not have archival, revenue-producing publications e.g., Magazine/Journal or Transactions

o Lack of drivers for researcho Lack of drivers for paperso "Member benefit" only – no public

visibility

Infrastructure (Chapters, etc.)o Few chapters hold regular meetings or

electionso Limited leadership development in

chapterso No Distinguished Lecturer (DL) programo Lack of chapter coordination

Insufficiently Diverse Membership Baseo Lacking Academia & Government

Baseso Multi-cultural globally-based

membershipo Lack of youth (i.e., GOLD)

Technical Activitieso Technical Committees (TC) provide

almost no value/service to membership/chapters

o Poor TC public visibilityo No TC succession plano PSES is not directly involved in

standards' development

Outreach and Liaison with Other Disciplines/Societies

o Ineffective liaisons structureo Cooperation with other societies mostly

unilateral

Voluntarismo Lack of motivated volunteerso Lack of leadership developmento Lack of employer support for

professional development

Limited Academic Basiso PSES perceived as "non-academic"o PSES is primarily industry-based with

little appreciation for professional activities (conferences, publications)

Not formal course work at university or vocational levelVisibility, Publicity and




Promotion of the PSES brando FOI/Name perceived as overly

Restrictiveo Limited visibility of Product safety

Engineeringo Limited visibility of regulatory

engineeringo Non-existent publicity/marketing plano No press releaseso Missed opportunities for marketing the

brand in other co-sponsored conferences

o Lack of PSES presentation/marketing/promotional materials

Financial Resourceso Limited financial Resourceso Limited sources of revenueo Only small number of papers on

IEEExplore

Size/ Membership Growtho Membership Retentiono Membership recruitment (e.g., authors,

symposia speakers)

Targeting Membership Needso Lack of plans to Address the trend of an

aging membershipo Lack of programs tailored to recent

graduated and young professionalso Limited information about wider PS&CE

member needs and interests (no systematic surveys)

Limited Awards and Recognition programs

Strategic/Long Range Thinkingo Lack of "ownership" on activities

("promise to deliver")o Plans yet to be put into practice

OPPORTUNITIES

Role and Needo Product safety engineering in new

technologyo Expanding cross technologieso Better design using product safety

engineeringo Emerging national/global

THREATS

Role and Needo Competitive societies/organizationso Embedded in many technologies

Value of Membershipo Members and others expect IP for freeo Exposes employees to job opportunities




requirementso Only a small segment of our market

currently belongs to PSES

Infrastructure (Chapters, etc.)o Potential for new chapterso Most chapters have been very low-

key in encouraging people to joino Chapter meetings are open, and

many attendees are IEEE members but do not belong to PSES

Networkingo We provide a forum for new job

opportunities during Economic downturn

Size/ Membership Growtho At conferences, many who join

PSES also join IEEEo 20%-30% of current PSES member

joined IEEE when they joined PSESo In 2011, a chapter Best Practice

Guideline has been implemented that encourages planning, advertising, elections, leadership development, and membership development

o Conferences for the next few years should help boost membership.

Conferenceso There is a leadership structure in

place that should boost attendance to the 300 range

o We now have a template for a fifth Newsletter dedicated to the symposium, serving as a template for conference marketing as well as Newsletter advertising

Publicationso Many and diverse technologies for

research/papers

Visibility, Publicity and Promotion of the PSES Brand

o We provide high visibility of safety related problems

o The conference Newsletter can serveto spread the word about PSES, and the relevant topics presented at the conference

(employers concerned they will lose trained staff)

o Limited long term carreer opportunities

Voluntarismo Not enough volunteers

Financial Resourceso Revenue stream vulnerability

(conference is our only real big revenue source now)

Infrastructure (Chapters, etc.)o Lack of consistent support IEEE

Section/Society/Chapterso Difficulty in forming China Chapters

(need Section support)

Size/ Membership Growtho Economic downturn (results in loss of

company support and ability for individuals to self fund)

o Lack of younger members to carry on (i.e. GOLD)

Publicationso Magazines (e.g. Compliance) attract

papers that should come to PSESo Not delivering good chapter meetings.

Other organizations (e.g. Reliability Society, certain other IEEE societies and the Systems Safety Society) may try to offer services that are related to our areas.

o As the approval process drags on, momentum for the Beijing chapter will be lost.




o Exposure at some agencies, especially UL can show the benefits to an IEEE society focused on regulatory issues

Potential Challenges

Outreacho How can the PSES reach out to the global workforce (technical and non-technical) to

use our technology?

o How can the PSES reach out to parts of the globe without access to our activities (e.g., limited access to our web site, travel restrictions, etc.)?

o How can the PSES identify and reach all segments of our potential audience, and identify the PS&CE activities this group might need or want?

o How can the PSES reach out to the practitioners, individuals that don’t find a need to read our journals, newsletters or web site information as well as come to our symposia ?

o Do we reach out to the world or let the world discover us?

o How can we engage K-12 as well as universities/college?

o How can the PSES reach out to the rest of the IEEE members that are not PSES members (including from other technical societies)?

o How can the PSES reach out to IEEE members and non-members and provide “chapter” type benefits to people who are not near established local chapters?

o How can the PSES reach out to former IEEE PSES members?

o How can we attract and retain members in industry?

o How do we educate industry of the value of IEEE and PSES membership?

o How do we encourage industry to support IEEE and PSES membership of its engineers?

Professional Leadershipo How will the PSES maintain an effective governance structure?

o How can the PSES be (continue to be) in the forefront of technology and engineering?

o New Technologies

o How can the PSES be alert to new emerging technologies?

o How can the PSES start new activities in emerging areas without getting caught up in territorial issues?

o How can we address competing global issues (e.g., smart grid, perceived global warming, transportation of the future, etc.)




Visibility and Image of the PSESo How can the PSES get industry and society to recognize our value and support our

goals, vision and activities?

o How can PS&CE Engineers gain more respect from industry?

o How can PSES change the perception that PS&CE is a scientific/engineering based discipline?

o How can the PSES improve relationships with industry?

o How can the PSES win over the applications-oriented population?

o How can PSES change our “industry/practical” image?

o What are the metrics for measuring that we are “universally viewed” as the most recognized and respected?

o How can the PSES promote the purpose of the Society?

o How can the PSES develop a public visibility campaign?

o How can the PSES educate all about itself?

o How do we get the word to the practicing engineers in our discipline, who are not members?

Collaboration and Competitiono How can we differentiate ourselves from our competitors?

o How can we deal with the competition?

o How does the PSES measure our competitors?

o How can we get information out quickly enough to match competition?

o How do we measure and monitor our performance against competition?

o How can we collaborate with other organizations?

o How can the PSES work better with sister/affiliate societies on a global scale?

o How can the PSES improve relationships with sections?

o How can the PSES deal with multidisciplinary issues which may require the PSES to partner with other entities?

Value of Membershipo How can the PSES meet the needs of young engineers (trade shows, products

newsletters, job markets, market research, etc.)?

o How can the PSES improve member value for society membership?

o How are we going to attract the non-academic technical professionals in our field?

o How can the PSES become relevant to engineers/technical professionals?

o How do we effectively market our value?




o How do we effectively survey members for what they want?

Productso What forms of delivery do our customers want; what forms will reach more people in

different parts of the world?

o How can we attract authors to contribute practical materials to our publications?

o How do we most effectively use electronic media and other forms of electronic access to information?

o How can the PSES publicize new offerings?

o How do we optimize our product portfolio?

o How can we develop an PS&CE community of practice to support membership (only) queries?

PSES Organization and Processo Does the PSES need better marketing?

o How do we get a critical mass of volunteers?

o How do we align volunteer efforts with our vision?

o How do we motivate volunteers and members to share our vision?

o How are we going to address our diverse membership interests?


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